Man beaten to death in Berlin may have been Israeli
German police find Israeli passport in back pocket of victim; local rabbi says 22-year-old was due to come to seder, but never showed
Stuart Winer is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel.
German police are investigating whether a man beaten to death beyond recognition in Berlin, whose body was found Sunday, was an Israeli citizen, local media reported on Wednesday.
A police spokesman confirmed that investigators had found the passport of a 22-year-old Israeli man in the back pocket of the sweatpants of the victim. However, the victim’s head was so badly beaten that police were unable to identify him as the passport holder.
The Chabad rabbi in Berlin, Yehuda Teichtal, told the NRG news site that the Israeli man to whom the passport belonged was supposed to celebrate the Passover seder at the local Chabad House on Friday night, but didn’t arrive.
Passersby found the body at 6.20 a.m. on Sunday morning in the ruins of an old Franciscan monastery in central Berlin. The site, which is open at all times, is known as a gathering place for drunks and homeless, local media said.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said that it was aware of the reports and was investigating the matter.
Police appealed for witnesses who may have been in the area over the Easter weekend and who may have information relating to the crime.
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